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“My interest in paediatric medicine came a desire to seek a cure for serious diseases by transplanting stem cells. I obtained my doctorate by working on the manipulation of the immune system. The poor clinical outcomes of patients with serious genetic diseases but no compatible donor prompted me to turn to gene therapy. Could we introduce new genetic information into a patient's cells, in order to repair a function that had been genetically altered since birth? That was a major challenge! We built the first retroviral vectors – modified viruses that are capable of transporting a "healthy" gene into cells in a stable manner. By treating children who suffered from profound immunodeficiency and did not have any white blood cells, we proved that genetic modification of the stem cells in a person's bone marrow can cure serious and even lethal diseases.

Passing on knowledge and helping young people to think about their first steps in scientific research is fascinating. You succeed by training people to get involved with something that you have started and so they take it further. I am a university professor of haematology and Head of the Biotherapy Department at Necker Children's Hospital, where I run both laboratory and care activities. I co-manage a research unit with Isabelle André-Schmutz – a full-time researcher – and our complementary skills are a real asset. Fewer than 10% of the hospital's heads of department are women. Even though male-female parity exists in undergraduate classes, it totally disappears at the top levels of decision-making bodies in hospitals, in universities and in research organizations. Before education significantly changes people's mentalities, change can only be imposed in a top-down way, via legislation and obligations that ensure parity in the workplace.”

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